Acbal's Moon: 3rd Day of Yule: The Noble Virtue of Courage

Courage...If you look in wikipedia (oh, the know it all of information in the WWW) you can find that the words is defined as "the ability to confront fear, pain, risk/danger, uncertainty, or intimidation. "Physical courage" is courage in the face of physical pain, hardship, death, or threat of death, while "moral courage"act rightly in the face of popular opposition, shame, scandal, or discouragement." How many times are we confronted by life? How many of our actions require us to have courage, to stand up for what we believe in? How many of us face these fears when we act in favor of those who cannot fend for themselves?

Marisela Escobedo Ortiz was a person who taught us courage. Her daughter, Rubi, was murdered over two years ago. As the justice system in Juarez stood still and did nothing, she set out in a crusade to find her daughter's killer. She found him, she handed him in, he confessed to the crime... and then was released by the penal system in the State of Chihuahua because of lack of evidence.

Marisela was overtaken by pain. Her only daughter's killer was being set free by the same penal system who is supposed to protect us from people such as this. She wouldn't have it. She set out to recapture this person and confronted the state, municipal, and federal government about it. She received many threats to her life, to the life of her beloved ones... And then, it happened... as reported by Front Line, "On the evening of 16 December 2010, Marisela Escobedo Ortiz was holding a peaceful vigil, together with other families of victims of femicide, against the absolution of her daughter's killer, outside the Chihuahua State Governor's Office. A security video recording is said to show a car arrive at the scene carrying a number of masked men. One man allegedly approached the human rights defender and exchanged words with her. She attempted to get away but the man followed her and shot her in the head. He immediately fled the scene. Marisela Escobedo Ortiz was taken to a local hospital but died shortly afterwards as a result of her injuries".

What is courage? standing up for your daughter, for another's daughter, for a city that needs it. If the authorities believe we are going to be silenced by these acts of criminal randomness, they are profoundly wrong. I, along with all those who are tired of living in fear, are standing up, fighting for our city, and joning forces to bring all those people who believe that by silencing our voice, they will silence everyone else.

Our fight is just beginning.

In memory of Marisela and Rubi Escobedo

Herb of the Month

Frankincense

(from Book of Shadows: Journey of a Solitary Witch Blog )

This is an aromatic resin from any of the four main species of deciduous trees in the Boswellia genus. They come in the form of small bushes and trees of moderate size with compound leaves and grow in a wide variety of environments, though the most aromatic varieties come from more arid regions. The flowers are yellowish-white with five petals. The resin comes from cuts in the tree which allow the sap to bubble out and harden . This is done when they are about 8 to 10 years of age. It has been a valuable trade item for thousands of years and used in rituals for just as long.

Latin Name:
Boswellia Carterii

Folk Names: Olibanum, Olibanus, Olibans

Element: Fire

Gender: Masculine

Planet: The Sun

Deities: Ra, Baal

Magical Uses:

Frankincense is often added to other magical mixtures in order to increase their potency due to the powerful vibrations of energy that are released from it when it is burned. These intense energies drive away negative energies and evil so it has been used throughout the ages for purification and exorcism. With this in mind we can see that it also an excellent choice for preventative measures such as that of protection. The strong vibrations produced by frankincense make it an excellent choice in meditation incenses and also in mixtures used to promote spiritual growth as well as to induce visions.

Medicinal Uses:

The resin has long been used in the Ayurvedic medicine of India and the bark has been used in Africa to treat fever, gastrointestinal distress and rheumatism. Studies are currently under way to test the resin, and its chemical derivatives, for treating chronic inflammatory diseases and one study claims the incense may work similarly to a psychoactive drug to reduce depression and anxiety, a correlation to its magical uses that cannot be easily ignored.

Folklore:

The resin was once burned as an offering to the sun god Ra in ancient Egypt on a daily basis at sunrise. As many people know, this was one of two magical resins presented to Jesus in the story of his birth by the Magi or “wise men”, who were traditionally wizards from the east. It has also been in use by the Catholic church as an incense, probably for this reason. It is also used in the Jewish tradition. Its appearance in these stories, and its current use by the church, is obviously influenced by its extensive use for thousands of years before they were written.

Spell - A - Week

Blowing Darts

(from Gypsy Magic Blog)

This is a spell to break and remove all the bad energy, negativity, bad luck, hexes, and etc. that others have put on you, or that you have inadvertently collected or allowed.

You will need:

1 white candle
1 smudge stick OR 1 generous handful of dried sage leaves (not the powder)
1 lemon (lemon essential oil - or pure lemon juice will also work)
1 paper plate
black marker or pen
13 straight pins
1 black cloth - the size of a large handkerchief
1 egg
1 potato

Making the spell:

Gather your supplies
Get centered
Draw an "eye of protection" on the paper plate with the black marker or pen.
Cut the lemon in half and rub it briskly over the candle until the candle is coated with the juice, wipe your hands on the black cloth.
Now, light the candle.
Next light the smudge stick, OR if you are using dried sage, place the leaves into a fireproof container and light them so that they begin to smolder and smoke.

Once you have some good smoke, take the potato and submerge it in the smoke using a circular, counterclockwise motion.
When the potato seems well fumigated, set it down on the paper plate and cover it with the black cloth.
Insert the 13 stick pins through the cloth into the potato.
Crack the egg over the cloth covered pinned potato and let the egg slide off of it and onto the plate.
Blow on each stick pin and into the potato. As you do this, recite the incantation, saying it louder each time, until you feel the negative energy has left you and transferred into the potato.

The Incantation:

Thirteen pins in the poppet,
Hex be broken. Now I stop it.
Curse be over. Curse be done.
I succeed. I have won.
Bad luck stays within the black.
I am not under attack.
Curse be buried and destroyed.
My life it is now filled with joy!

Dispersing the bad energy:

Unwrap the cloth, being careful to keep the pins intact. If a pin does not come out with the cloth, but stays embedded in the potato, you'll have to re-do the spell.

This is important. The potato and the black cloth with the pins in it must be disposed of separately, far from your home. The paper plate should be burned, along with whatever remains of the sage. It's also important to dispose of the lemon (if you used one) and the shell from the egg.

Ideally, the black cloth with the pins will be dropped at a crossroads NOT near your home; the paper plate and the sage burned - their ashes scattered to the four winds; and the potato tossed into a river or sent out with the tide.

Alternatively, the items could be buried near a crossroads (just be sure that the potato and the black cloth are buried separately and at a good distance from one another). Do not bury any of the items in your own back yard!